Tens of thousands of residents evacuated as Russia imposes “anti-terrorist” measures in Kursk and nearby areas of Bryansk and Belgorod.
Ukraine is bracing for more Russian attacks in response to its cross-border incursion into the Kursk region as Russia says it is sending reinforcements including additional troops, tanks, artillery and missile systems.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy acknowledged on Saturday that Ukrainian forces were fighting in Kursk, saying the operation was part of Kyiv’s attempt to restore justice after Russia’s invasion of the country in 2022.
Zelensky said in his nightly video address that he discussed the operation with Ukrainian Supreme Commander Oleksandr Syrskyi.
“Today I received several reports from Commander-in-Chief Syrsky on the front lines and our measures to push the war into the territory of the aggressor,” he said.
“I am grateful to every unit of the Ukrainian Defense Forces that is working to ensure this. Ukraine has already proven that it is capable of restoring justice and ensuring that the necessary pressure is applied to the aggressor.”
The Ukrainian president’s comments came hours after Russia said it had imposed “anti-terrorist measures” in Kursk and two other regions on the border with Ukraine in response to the operation.
The measures taken by the National Anti-Terrorism Committee in Kursk, Belgorod and Bryansk included restrictions on transportation in specific areas, tightening security around sensitive sites, and eavesdropping on phone calls and other communications, according to Russia Today news agency.
The statement said the decision by Alexander Bortnikov, head of the Federal Security Service, came in response to “Ukraine’s unprecedented attempt to destabilize the situation in a number of regions.”
More than 76,000 people have been evacuated from areas in the Kursk region, the TASS news agency quoted the local Emergencies Ministry as saying on Saturday.
Ukraine launched a surprise offensive in Kursk on Tuesday, in the largest cross-border assault since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Russia’s defence ministry said it had deployed more troops and ammunition to the border area near Kursk in preparation for a possible counter-offensive, as Ukraine’s advance in the area appeared to catch Russia by surprise.
Russian President Vladimir Putin called the incursion a “large-scale provocation” by Ukraine, and Russian military chief of staff Valery Gerasimov vowed to crush it.
The Russian authorities have already declared a state of emergency “at the federal level” in Kursk.
Meanwhile, a Russian missile hit a supermarket in the Ukrainian town of Kostyantynivka in the front-line Donetsk region on Friday, killing at least 14 people and wounding 43 others, according to Ukrainian officials.
“Russian terrorists attacked an ordinary supermarket and a post office. There are people under the rubble,” Zelensky said in an interview with Channel X.
Kostyantynivka is located about 13 kilometres (8 miles) from the active fighting line in eastern Ukraine.
“No situation on the battlefield can justify targeting civilians,” Ukrainian Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin said on Channel X, while regional governor Vadym Vilashkin said a Kh-38 air-to-ground missile was used in the attack.
There was no immediate comment from Russia, which denies deliberately targeting civilians.
Meanwhile, in the Sumy region of northern Ukraine, volunteers rushed to evacuate dozens of residents and their pets, in anticipation of further Russian attacks.
Sumy Governor Volodymyr Artyukh ordered the evacuation of 28 villages in a 10-kilometre (six-mile) radius along the border. National police said Friday that 20,000 people would have to leave.
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